NFS Form 10-900 (Oct. 1990) 0MB No. 10024-0018

United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Registration Form

This form to ComL being documented," enteV^'WA" for "not applicable*." For functions, architectural classification, materials and areas o'f significance, enter only categories and subcategories from the instructions. Place additional entries and narrative items on continuation sheets (NPS Form 10-900a). Use a typewriter, word processor, or computer, to complete all items. 1. Name of Property historic name Littleton Main Street______other names/site number Littleton Main Street Historic District/5 AH 1430______2. Location street & number 2299-2599 W. Main Street "SET(except(exc 2340,, 2350, and 2376), [N/A] not for publication 5711 S. Nevada and bb86 b. Sycamore St. city or town Littleton ___ [N/A] vicinity state Colorado code CO county Arapahoe code 005 zip code 80120

3. State/Federal Agency Certification As the designated authority under the National Historic Preservation Act, as amended, I hereby certify that this [ x ] nomination [ 1 request for determination of eligibility meets the documentation standards for registering properties in the National Register of Historic Places and meets the procedural and professional requirements set forth in 36 CFR Part 60. In my opinion, the property [ x] meets [ ] does not meet the National Register criteria. I recommend that this property be considered significant [ ] nationally [ ] statewide [ x] locally. >ee continuation sheet for additional CQirjments [ ].)

Signature of certifying official/Title State ^Historic Preservation Office, Colorado Historical Society___ StateTor Federal agency and bureau In my opinion, the property [ ] meets [ ] does not meet the National Register criteria. ( See continuation sheet for additional comments [ ].)

Signature of certifying official/Title Date

State or Federal agency and bureau 4. National Park Service Certification I hereby certify that the property is: Signature oi-ihe Keeper Date [^ entered in the National Register See continuation sheet! ]. [ ] determined eligible for the National Register See continuation sheet [ ]. [ ] determined not eligible for the National Register. [ ] removed from the National Register [ ] other, explain See continuation sheet [ ]. Littleton Main Street Arapahoe / Colorado Name of Property County/State

5. Classification

Ownership of Property Number of Resources within Property (Check as many boxes as apply) (Check only one box) (Do not count previously listed resources.) Contributing Noncontributing [x ] private [ ] building(s) [x ] public-local [x ] district 23 10 buildings [ ] public-State [ ] site [ ] public-Federal [ ] structure 0 0 sites [ ] object 0 0 structures

0 0 objects

23 10 Total

Name of related multiple property listing. Number of contributing resources (Enter "N/A" if property is not part of a multiple property listing.) previously listed in the National Register. N/A 1

6. Function or Use Historic Function Current Functions (Enter categories from instructions) (Enter categories from instructions) COMMERCE/TRADE/specialtv store COMMERCE/TRADE/specialtv store COMMERCE/TRADE/restaurant COMMERGE/TRADE/restaurant_____ COMMERCE/TRADE/business___ COMMERCE/TRADE/business______GOVERNMENT/citv hall______COMMERCE/TRADE/financial institution RECREATION AND CULTURE/theater RECREATION AND CULTURE/theater

7. Description Architectural Classification Materials (Enter categories from instructions) (Enter categories from instructions) LATE VICTORIAN/ltalianate_____ foundation CONCRETE LATE 19TH AND EARLY 20TH CENTURY STONE AMERICAN MOVEMENTS/Commercial Style walls BRICK LATE VICTORIAN/ltalian Renaissance____ TERRA COTTA MODERN MOVEMENT/Moderne______roof ASPHALT other CONCRETE STONE Narrative Description (Describe the historic and current condition of the property on one or more continuation sheets.) Littleton Main Street Arapahoe / Colorado Name of Property County/State

8.Statement of Significance

Applicable National Register Criteria Areas of Significance (Mark "x" in one or more boxes for tne criteria qualifying the property for (Enter categories from instructions) National Register listing.) COMMERCE_____ POLITICS/GOVERNMENT [X] A Property is associated with events that have made TRANSPORTATION a significant contribution to the broad patterns of our ARCHITECTURE history [ ] B Property is associated with the lives of persons significant in our past. Periods of Significance 1890-1955 ___ [X] C Property embodies the distinctive characteristics of a type, period, or method of construction or represents the work of a master, or possesses high artistic values, or represents a significant and distinguishable entity whose components lack individual distinction. Significant Dates [ 1 D Property has yielded, or is likely to yield, information important in prehistory or history. 1890 ___ 1955 Criteria Considerations (Mark "x" in all the boxes that apply.) Property is: Significant Person(s) (Complete if Criterion B is marked above). [ ] A owned by a religious institution or used for religious N/A ______purposes. [ ] B removed from its original location. [ ] C a birthplace or grave. Cultural Affiliation N/A______[ ] D a cemetery. t J E a reconstructed building, object, or structure. [ ] F a commemorative property. Architect/Builder Benedict, Jules J.B. [X] G less than 50 years of age or achieved significance within the past 50 years.

Narrative Statement of Significance (Explain the significance of the property on one or more continuation sheets.)

9. Major Bibliographic References Bibliography (Cite the Books, articles and other sources used in preparing this form on one or more continuation sheets.)

Previous documentation on file (NPS): Primary location of additional data:

[ ] preliminary determination of individual listing (36 CFR 67) has been [x ] State Historic Preservation Office requested [ ] Other State Agency [ 1 previously listed in the National Register ( ] Federal Agency [ 1 previously determined eligible by the National Register [x ] Local Government [ } designated a National Historic Landmark [ ] University [ ] recorded by Historic American Buildings Survey [ ] Other: #______I 1 recorded by Historic American Engineering Record Name of repository: # ______Littleton Area Historical Museum Littleton Main Street______Arapahoe / Colorado Name of Property County/State

10.Geographical Data

Acreage of Property 8 acres______

UTM References (Place additional UTM references on a continuation sheet.) A. Zone 13 Easting 498610 Northing 4384680 B. Zone Easting ____ Northing ___ C. Zone Easting ____ Northing ____ D. Zone Easting _____ Northing ___ [ ] See continuation sheet Verbal Boundary Description (Describe the boundaries of the property on a continuation sheet.) Boundary Justification (Explain why the boundaries were selected on a continuation sheet.)

11. Form Prepared By name/title R. Laurie Simmons and Thomas H. Simmons, historians______organization Front Range Research Associates. Inc.______date 28 November 1997 street & number 3635 West 46th Avenue______telephone (303) 477-7597 city or town Denver______state CO_____ zip code 80211______

Additional Documentation Submit the following items with the completed form:

Continuation Sheets

Maps A USGS map (7.5 or 15 minute series) indicating the property's location. A Sketch map for historic districts and properties having large acreage or numerous resources.

Photographs Representative black and white photographs of the property.

Additional Items (Check with the SHPO or FPO for any additional items)

Property Owner (Complete this item at the request of SHPO or FPO.) name (See list on continuation sheets)______street & number______telephone___ city or town______state______zip code___

Paperwork Reduction Act Statement: This information is being collected for applications to the National Register of Historic Places to nominate properties for listing or determine eligibility for listing, to list properties, and to amend existing National Historic Preservation Act, as amended (16 U.S.C. 470 etseq.). ., gathering Administrative (1024-0018), Washington, DC 205037 ' . Reductions Projects NPS Form 10-900a OMB No. 1024-0018 (Rev. 8/86)

United States Department of the Interior National Park Service

National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet

Section number 7 Page 1 ______L'ttleton Main Street, Arapahoe County, Colorado

DESCRIPTION

General Description

The Littleton Main Street Historic District is a three-and-a-half block concentration of significant historic commercial and civic buildings located along and adjacent to the community's main commercial thoroughfare and encompassing the heart of the city's historic downtown. Littleton, which lies approximately ten miles southwest of Denver, in Arapahoe County, Colorado, developed as a supply center for surrounding farms and ranches and as a suburban residential community. Main Street, which was also part of U.S. Highway 85 connecting Denver with communities to the south, is aligned on a generally east-west axis through the center of the historic 1872 Littleton Townsite. The buildings within the district are one to two stories in height, are predominantly of brick construction, and display a variety of architectural influences. Most buildings are evenly setback from the one-way, two-lane street. Streetscaping along Main Street includes concrete sidewalks and curbs, locust trees, and modern and reproduction street lamps (Photograph 1). 1 Toward the east, Main Street rises in elevation, traversing the depressed railroad tracks which have played a significant role in the town's development and passing the Arapahoe County Courthouse, which emphasizes Littleton's role as county seat and overlooks the commercial district (Photograph 2). Vistas toward the west include the Carnegie Library and, in the distance, the foothills and towering peaks of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains (See Photograph 3).

The Littleton Main Street Historic District includes thirty buildings along West Main Street (2299 to 2590 West Main St., inclusive), plus three side-street buildings: 5671 South Nevada St.; 5711 South Nevada St.; and 5686 South Sycamore St. 2 The district orientation is east-west and embraces approximately eight acres. Twenty-three of the buildings within the district (70 percent) are contributing and nine buildings (30 percent) are noncontributing (See Sketch Map). The buildings within the district are in good to excellent condition, and several have been restored to their historic elegance in recent years. Within the district is one resource previously listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the Littleton Town Hall, 2450 West Main St.

Historic Development and Appearance of the District

The district includes buildings dating from 1890 through the 1960s. 3 The nineteenth century buildings within the district were erected of red pressed brick, many with stone foundations and trim. These buildings gradually replaced smaller frame structures of Littleton's pioneer era and proclaimed the success of their builders through solid construction and application of exterior

1 Photograph references are keyed to the Photographic Index and the Sketch Map. 2See Boundary Description and List of Resources for a more precise delineation of included and excluded resources. 30ne resource erected in 1886 was moved into the district in 1900. NPS Form 10-900a OMB No. 1024-0018 (Rev. 8/86)

United States Department of the Interior National Park Service

National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet

Section number 7 Page 2 ______Littleton Main Street, Arapahoe County, Colorado ornament. The south side of the 2400 and 2500 blocks of Main Street filled with buildings during the 1890s {Photograph 4). The 1890s buildings varied in height from one to two stories, with flat roofs, cornices of brick or metal, and generous display windows on the first story. The more architecturally distinguished buildings of the nineteenth century, such as, 2570 West Main St., displayed elements of the Italianate Commercial style, including bracketed cornices, segmental arched windows with hood molding, and decorative courses (Photograph 5). When erected, several of the nineteenth century buildings were considered trendsetting in Littleton's business district for their fine architecture and quality of construction. August Kauer's 1899 business block at 2500 West Main St. was notable for its transitional design by architect Frederick C. Eberley, which featured brick walls with stone trim and second story windows enframed with brick molding.

Several important commercial buildings were completed in the first decade of the twentieth century, the busiest period of construction within the district. Regular streetcar service along Main Street by the end of 1907 stimulated growth. The competitiveness of commercial construction during the era resulted in the addition of some of Littleton's finest architecture. The earliest of the buildings erected in the decade, the 1903 Kraft building at 2550 West Main St., had much in common with the commercial buildings designed toward the end of the previous century, including a brick corbel table and tall, narrow, segmental arched, transomed windows. All of the buildings completed within the district during the 1900s were two stories in height and composed of brick with stone trim. Adolph Coors pushed Littleton architecture further into the twentieth century with the erection of a large business block at 2489 West Main St. in 1905 (Photograph 6). The Coors Building was a solid corner edifice, with less applied ornament than most of the town's nineteenth century buildings and with features of the Commercial style adapted on a modest scale. Large upper story windows were enframed with molded brick, a flat roof was crowned with a prominent projecting cornice which extended along two street faces, and the design included a cantilevered corner on the southwest with inset entrance on the first story.

A major grouping of buildings completed during the first decade of the twentieth century filled in the north side of the 2500 block of West Main Street (2509, 2529-39, 2559, and 2569-75) and provided the town with a streetwall of substantial, finely crafted commercial structures (Photograph 7). Three of the buildings were financed by Harry H. Lilley, who was joint investor with the First National Bank of Littleton in a corner block with lavishly ornamented cornice and cantilevered southeast corner (Photograph 8). The building's architectural themes were replicated in two subsequent buildings to the west. Like the Coors building, Lilley's buildings also had second story windows enframed with molded brick. The fourth building on the block, the 1908 Batschelet Block at 2569-75 West Main St., was a restrained design crowned by a classical cornice (Photograph 9).

Construction within the district resumed after World War I, allowing Littleton to keep pace with the latest trends and patterns of commercial development. Newspaper editor Houstoun Waring recalled that, in the 1920s as in latter decades, Main Street was a diverse collection of "one-story and two- NFS Form 10-900a OMBNo. 1024-0018 (Rev. 8/86}

United States Department of the Interior National Park Service

National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet

Section number 7 Page 3 Littleton Main Street, Arapahoe County, Colorado

Figure 1 . Adolph Coors erected this building at the northeast corner of Main and Nevada streets in 1905. SOURCE: Littleton Area Historical Museum, Littleton's Yesterday (Littleton: Littleton Area Historical Museum, 1971). story buildings all without harmonious design."4 The most architecturally significant building in the collection received national attention upon its completion in 1920. The Littleton Town Hall was described as the "finest town hall for a small American town." The building was designed by architect Jules J.B. Benedict, a resident of Littleton who had been selected by the town to design a Carnegie Library of similar quality at the west end of Main Street in 1916. The Town Hall's Italian Renaissance style was translated into elements such as arcaded entrances and windows with pointed arches, a front wall of smooth and ornamented terra cotta, and wrought iron balconets and lanterns (Photograph 12). The quality of the design focused local civic pride and regional attention on Littleton's Main Street.

lHoustoun Waring, Hous's Littleton (Littleton: Littleton Independent, 1981 NFS Form 10-900a 0MB No. 1024-0018 (Rev. 8/86)

United States Department of the Interior National Park Service

National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet

Section number 7 Page 4 ______Littleton Main Street, Arapahoe County, Colorado

An appropriate addition to the Littleton Main Street Historic District following World War I was the Ivy W. Hunt car dealership at 2329 West Main St. (Photograph 10). The large brick building conveyed a fashionable, pared down style which emphasized the modern vehicles available within. The building's red brick with contrasting white brick, tile, and concrete, and its expansive display windows facing Main Street encouraged customers to join the automobile age. A second automobile-related building erected within the district was the Sommers Oil Company Service Station, 2299 West Main St., which announced its purpose through its convenient corner location providing easy access to its gasoline pumps, a projecting one-story office with carport implying quick service, and a recessed greasing facility for repair work (Photograph 11).

Another thoroughly twentieth century development which impacted Main Street after World War I was the appearance of the motion picture theater. The finest of Littleton's historic movie theaters was the Palm, erected in 1925 (Photograph 13). The architecture of the Town Hall may have influenced the upper story fenestration of the Palm. The building at 2410 West Main St. also operated as a movie theater, which survived from the 1920s until the opening of the Woodlawn Theater in the Woodlawn Shopping Center six blocks east of downtown in the 1950s.

Also erected in 1925, Valore Hardware reflected popular elements of twentieth century commercial construction in its flat roof, red brick walls with white brick trim, and three storefronts with large display windows stretching along Main Street (Photograph 14). The building's original design, which featured projecting piers and parapets, reflected a decidedly Art Deco element. Predictably, the buildings erected during the financial downturn of the 1930s were small in scale and represented simplicity in design, such as 2516 West Main St.

No buildings within the district were erected in the 1940s. Two resources were added to the district before the erection of the Woodlawn Shopping Center in 1955 siphoned away much of Main Street's clientele. An Art Moderne style doctors' office with curved corners, panels of glass block, architectural tile and buff brick, and a curved hood was completed at 5711 South Nevada St. in 1951 (Photograph 15). In 1954, civic leader Ulva C. Thomas erected a one-story buff brick building at 2400 West Main St. with a beveled corner facing the intersection (Photograph 16). In the 1960s, two last buildings were added to the district: a sleek one-story corner bank building clad with marble at 2409 West Main St. (Photograph 17) and a small one-story building at 5671 South Nevada St. added to the north wall of the historic First National Bank.

Description of Resources Within the District

The following sections further describe the buildings within the district. The buildings are divided into contributing and noncontributing categories and grouped by the following periods of construction: Nineteenth Century Buildings (1886-1899); Early Twentieth Century Buildings (1 900- 1910); Interwar Buildings (1919-1939); Postwar Buildings (1946-1955); and Buildings Erected After the Period of Significance (1956-Present). Within these categories, the most important NPS Form 10-900a 0MB No. 1024-0018 (Rev. 8/86)

United States Department of the Interior National Park Service

National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet

Section number 7 Page 5 ______Littleton Main Street, Arapahoe County, Colorado

historic buildings are discussed first and other buildings follow in address order. Following the descriptions is a table providing a complete list of all the resources. In the discussion below, the current address, Smithsonian identification number, current building or business name, historic building or business name if different from current name, date of construction, and architect, if known, are given. The photograph number refers to photographs included as part of this nomination. Photographs are identified on the map of the district by a number enclosed by a circle.

Contributing Buildings

Nineteenth Century Buildings (1886-1899)

2570 West Main Street, 5AH1291, Woods N' Stitches, Kalinowski Bakery, 1890s, Photograph 5. Charles Kalinowski operated a bakery in this building which appears on the 1893 Sanborn map. The two-story, flat roof, painted brick commercial building has a projecting, elaborately ornamented metal cornice with decorative molding and brackets. The second story is divided by narrow pilasters into three bays, each with a segmental arched window with hood molding and stone sill. The remodeled first story is surmounted by a steel lintel and has a central entrance with angled wall flanked by plate glass display windows enframed by piers of stacked brick.

2500 West Main Street, 5AH1281, Antiques Vintage, Kauer Block, 1899, F.C. Eberley. In 1899, August Kauer erected this two-story corner commercial block with lava stone foundation and trim and used part of the building for his meat market. The flat roof building has a molded brick cornice and shopfront cornice. Pilasters divide the upper story into four bays, each bay is enframed with molded brick and has two one-over-one-light double-hung sash windows with shared stone sills. A shingled mansard overhangs the first story, which is divided [nto two storefronts flanking a central entrance to the upper story. The storefronts have paired plate glass display windows with architectural tile under the windows.

2530 West Main Street, 5AH1285, Winners Circle, O.G. Hill Drug Store, 1886. This small one- story commercial building was erected by O.G. Hill to house his pioneer drug store on Rapp Street in 1886. In 1900, the building was moved to this lot on Main Street and historic photographs indicate that its stepped brick parapet with geometric insets had been added by 1911. The lower portion of the front wall has been remodeled with an inset, angled, stuccoed wall leading to the entrance and paired plate glass windows.

2550 West Main Street, 5AH1292, Joli's, Littleton Post Office, 1893. This two-story painted brick commercial building with Italianate commercial details was an early location of the Littleton post office. The flat roof rectangular building has an elaborately paneled cornice and decorative stringcourses. Second story walls are divided into two bays and enframed by pilasters. Each bay features a one-over-one-light double-hung sash window with segmental arched transom, hood molding, and a stone sill. The remodeled first story is clad with horizontal board siding and has a NFS Form 10-900a 0MB No. 1024-0018 (Rev. 8/86)

United States Department of the Interior National Park Service

National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet

Section number 7 Page 6 ______Littleton Main Street, Arapahoe County, Colorado

central entrance flanked by projecting, above ground, hipped roof display windows.

2590 West Main Street, 5AH1294, Creator Mundi, Spotswood Building/Burden Meat, 1890s. This two-story corner commercial building appears on the 1893 Sanborn map as a meat market. The rectangular, painted brick building has a cornice of molded brick and a central projecting bracket. The upper story is enframed by brick pilasters with corbelled bases and has two transomed windows with continuous stone lintel and sill courses and molding between the courses. The first story has been remodeled with horizontal board siding, an inset entrance, and a bay window.

Early Twentieth Century Buildings (1900-1910)

2489 West Main Street, 5AH1279, Seasons, Coors Building, 1905, Photograph 6. Adolph Coors of Golden erected this significant two-story corner business block, which included five storefronts on the ground floor and space for a gentlemen's club above. The buff brick building has a flat roof stepped up at the southwest corner with plaques inscribed "COORS" and a projecting cornice with dentil molding, as well as a storefront cornice. The second story features evenly spaced one-over- one-light double-hung sash windows enframed with molding between brick pilasters rising from a stone sill course. The first story has an inset beveled wall at the southwest, with the cantilevered upper story supported by a metal column. The front (south) wall is divided by metal pilasters between plate glass windows with clerestory windows and paneled kickplates. The first story of the west wall has segmental arched windows and a paneled door with arched transom. The building was restored in the 1990s. The building is a designated Littleton landmark.

2485 West Main Street, 5AH 127 8, Sea sons-A Better Idea Interiors (east), Coors Building Extension, 1906. In 1906, a one-story addition to the Coors building was erected containing three storefronts. The buff brick building has a flat roof with concrete coping, a simple molded brick cornice, and a rooftop flagpole at the southeast corner. The front wall has a shopfront cornice above its three bays divided by brick piers. Two western bays have large plate glass display windows with paneled kickplates, while the eastern bay has an inset entrance with paneled and glazed door flanked by display windows with paneled kickplates. The building was renovated in 1990. Entrances were removed from the two western bays.

2509 West Main Street, 5AH1282, The Andy Marquez Gallery, First National Bank of Littleton, 1905, Photograph 8. The First National Bank of Littleton and local residents Mr. and Mrs. Harry Lilley collaborated in the construction of this two-story painted brick business block. The corner building has a flat roof pierced by short brick pilasters topped by finials. Spaces between the finials are ornamented with a parapet with an elongated sawtooth pattern, beneath which is a projecting cornice with arcaded cornice trim. The upper story has evenly spaced, one-over-one-light double- hung sash windows with stone sills enframed by brick molding. The first story is surmounted by a secondary cornice and has a beveled inset wall on the southeast; the cantilevered upper story of the southeast corner is supported by a brick pier. Plate glass display windows of the first story NPS Form 10-900a 0MB No. 1024-0018 (Rev. 8/86)

United States Department of the Interior National Park Service

National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet

Section number 7 Page 7 ______Littleton Main Street, Arapahoe County, Colorado sheltered by fabric awnings, are topped by clerestory windows. Walls under windows are clad with stacked brick. The east wall has a large arched window and a slab door with stone threshold. The first story has been altered with new display windows and new brick under the windows.

2569-75 West Main Street, 5AH1290, Fritter's Cafe/Remember When Antiques, Batschelet Building, 1908, Photograph 9. Cattleman and investor Edward F. Batschelet erected this business block which contained storefronts on the first story and a meeting hall on the second in 1908. The two-story building has a flat roof with projecting, bracketed cornice with dentil molding and a storefront cornice. The painted brick walls have a continuous sill course on the second story and a brick string course with stone insets. Large one-over-one-light double-hung sash windows with architrave surrounds are evenly spaced on the second story. The first story has four entrances with doors with large rectangular lights and transoms flanked by large plate glass display windows with wood kickplates sheltered by awnings. The first story of the building was converted to an auto garage in the early twentieth century and restored to storefronts after 1955. The building is a designated Littleton landmark.

2529-39 West Main Street, 5AH1284, David Taylor Dance/Hannum Studios, Lilley Building/Boddy Block, 1906. This two-story brick building was erected by Harry H. Lilley about 1906 and housed three commercial establishments and the Arapahoe County offices before the courthouse was completed in Littleton the following year. The brick building filled the gap between two buildings owned by Lilley and was designed to continue the pilasters, parapet, cornice and ornamentation of the building to the east. The upper story of the building has a central group of four one-over- one-light double-hung sash windows flanked by groups of two windows. The windows are each enframed with brick and have rock-faced stone sills linked by a course of brick. The first story is sheltered by a shingled mansard overhang above two storefronts with metal frame plate glass windows and glazed doors. The first story has been completely remodeled and the brick has been painted.

2559 West Main Street, 5AH1288, Red Tiger, Lilley Livery Stable, 1907. Harry H. Lilley erected this building as a livery stable about 1907, replacing an earlier frame building of the same function. The two-story painted brick building continues the pilasters, parapet, cornice, and ornamentation of the two buildings to the east. The upper story has three groups of two windows with rock- faced stone sills linked by a course of brick. Each window is enframed with brick; the windows have been bricked in. The first story, which has a single storefront, has been remodeled with board and batten siding above angled plate glass display windows sheltered by metal and fiberglass hoods. The building had an eastern storefront by 1914 and two western storefronts were added by the 1930s.

2546 West Main Street, 5AH1286, Greener Pastures, Littleton Independent, 1906. The Littleton Independent, the town's longest-lived newspaper, constructed this building for its office and printing plant in 1906. The two-story painted brick building has a flat roof with paneled and NFS Form 10-900a 0MB No. 1024-0018 (Rev. 8/86)

United States Department of the Interior National Park Service

National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet

Section number 7 Page 8 ______Littleton Main Street, Arapahoe County, Colorado

molded cornice and the upper story is divided by pilasters into two bays, each with a segmental arched window with arched hood molding and rock-faced stone sill. The first story has a center, recessed entrance flanked by angled walls and plate glass display windows. A secondary entrance on the west has a paneled and glazed door. Alterations include painted brick, stacked brick under the display windows, casement windows on the second story, and newer door at the western entrance.

2550 West Main Street, 5AH1287, Colorado Stained Glass, Kraft Building, 1903. This two-story painted brick building was erected by Henry Kraft in 1903 to house a dry goods and notions store on the first floor and meeting hall on the upper story. The building's design has much in common with Littleton's commercial buildings of the previous century. The building has a flat roof with molded brick and a brick corbel table. The second story has four tall, narrow, transomed, segmental arched windows with rock-faced stone sills. Above the windows is a course of decorative molding. The first story includes an off-center, inset entrance with wood paneling flanked by plate glass display windows topped by clerestory windows covered with paneling and with stacked brick under display windows. The first story storefront has been remodeled.

2560-64 West Main Street, 5AH1289, Chocolates By Mary Carol, Dana Downing Grocery, 1905. This building was erected in 1905 to house a grocery and was described as "the big daylight store." The two-story brick building has a flat roof, corbel table, and courses of molded brick. The second story features two one-over-one-light double-hung sash windows with wide rock-faced stone lintels and stone sills and paneled shutters. The first story is clad with simulated masonry and has corner pilasters and a central inset entrance area clad with shingles and flanked by large display windows. Alterations include addition of simulated masonry and wood shingles to first story and painting of brick and stone. A secondary western entrance has a newer door and covered up transom.

Interwar Buildings (1919-1939)

2450 West Main Street, 5AH161, Town Hall Arts Center, Littleton Town Hall, 1920, J.J.B. Benedict, Photograph 12. When local officials requested a town hall whose front would "have a character that would dominate the design," architect J.J.B. Benedict drew inspiration from the Palazzo della Regione in Vincenza, Italy. The front of the Italian Renaissance style two-and-a-half- story building is clad with architectural terra cotta blocks cast to resemble stone and hand molded ornamentation. The first story features an arcade of triple pointed arch entrances accentuated by archivolt molding. Flanking the central arch are lanterns Grafted by Benedict from old iron balconies. On the second story, a central arcade of five, slender, pointed arch windows with polychromatic ornaments and small columns is flanked by two similar windows facing wrought iron balconets. The flat roof building is crowned by a projecting, tiled cornice with modillions. The building has been altered by enclosing the three arches of the first story arcade with multi-light doors, sidelights, and overdoors, and by a 1980s rear concrete block addition not visible from the NPS Form 10-900a OMB No. 1024-0018 (Rev. 8/86)

United States Department of the Interior National Park Service

National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet

Section number 7 Page 9 ______Littleton Main Street, Arapahoe County, Colorado front. The building is listed in the National Register of Historic Places and is a designated Littleton landmark.

2329 West Main Street, 5AH1264, LittleTown, LW. Hunt Building, 1919, Photograph 18. Ivy W. Hunt erected this corner brick commercial building in 1919 to house his Ford car dealership. The large, rectangular building includes the original one-story auto dealership and a stepped back modern rooftop addition. The red pressed brick walls have paneled piers and decorative white brick insets forming the letter "H". The building has a flat roof with piers which project above the roof, contrasting white concrete coping, and courses of molded brick. The large central entrance facing Main Street is surrounded with glazed white brick and has inset double doors with rectangular lights topped by a divided transom. A plaque above the entrance is inscribed "I.W. Hunt 1919." Flanking the entrance are huge plate glass display windows with smooth white concrete sills, clerestory windows, and fabric awnings. In the mid-1980s, the Urban Design Group produced a three-story stepped back brick addition with central, gabled, glazed atrium, and rehabilitated the original building. The 1919 portion of the building retains its original design, scale, materials, feeling, and association, while the sympathetic 1980s addition is subtly setback to diminish its impact on the earlier building.

2359 West Main Street, 5AH1267, Homewood Furniture Store, Palm Theater, 1925, Unknown, Twentieth Century Commercial, Photograph 13. The popularity of motion pictures led J.H. Peterson to erect the Palm Theater in 1925. The finest historic movie theater in Littleton, the double-height one-story building has a flat roof with projecting piers and brick coping and a molded metal secondary cornice. The walls are composed of painted, wire-drawn brick on the front and pressed brick on the sides. The central inset entrance has a door with large rectangular light and transom flanked by large plate glass windows. Above the secondary cornice is a central ribbon of five multi-light windows with shared sill flanked on each end by paired windows. An alley is adjacent to the east wall of the building. The building has a one-story rear addition with garage door. The theater operated only a few years and the building was remodeled by the 1930s as a department store, with entrance and windows in the current configuration.

2379-99 West Main Street, 5AH1269, Valore Hardware, 1925, Photograph 14. This one-story brick building was erected by A.J. Valore in 1925 to house his hardware business and two other enterprises. The red brick building, with three storefronts facing Main Street has a flat roof with contrasting white brick coping and is divided into three bays by piers of red and white brick. The storefronts have inset entrances with glazed doors flanked by plate glass display windows with continuous metal lintels. Walls above lintels have panels outlined in white brick. The eastern storefront has a thin, projecting, metal hood above the windows. The west wall has decorative brickwork and two multi-light windows with lintels and sills of white brick. Alterations include removal of clerestory windows and addition of stone veneer under display windows. Piers and parapets originally projected above the roof. NPS Form 10-900a OMB No. 1024-0018 (Rev. 8/86)

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2299 West Main Street, 5AH 1263, Centennial Vacuum and Sewing, Sommers Oil Service Station, 1922. This building at the east end of Main Street represents the impact of the automobile upon the thoroughfare. The building, erected by the Sommers Oil Company of Denver in 1922, originally consisted of a filling station on the south and a greasing facility on the east; the two buildings are now joined. The southern part of the one-story building has a hipped roof with widely overhanging eaves and walls composed of wide and narrow concrete blocks. The front wall has thick piers with applied ornaments which originally held lanterns. Drive-through gasoline service access was originally between the piers; the area has been enclosed and includes a glazed door and plate glass windows. A beveled wall with vertical siding and plate glass window joins the two buildings. The eastern greasing facility has a flat roof with parapet elaborated by contrasting coping. A garage door entrance has been enclosed on the east building.

2516 West Main Street, 5AH1283, Two Potters, Rice Grocery, 1932. This one-story brick commercial building originally housed a grocer and a dry cleaner and later a meat market. The building has a flat roof with brick coping and walls of painted, wire-drawn brick; newer Roman brick is under the windows. An off-center brick pier divides the building into two bays. The entrance on the east has an inset door and transom. A single plate glass display window with clerestory window is adjacent to the door; a ribbon of display windows is west of the pier. This building is a designated Littleton landmark.

5686 South Sycamore Street, 5AH1426, Oasis Lounge, Franzen Grocery, 1920. Cornelius Franzen built this small one-story building as a grocery store in 1920. The brick building has a flat roof with slight parapet on the front and a smooth sign panel. A suspended metal awning shelters the off- center entrance and a large window opening, mostly covered with wood paneling. A segmental arched window on the south wall provides a view of Main Street. Alterations include painted brick, modification of the facade window, and the metal awning.

Postwar Buildings (1946-19551

57/7 South Nevada Street, 5AH 1329f Medical Offices, 1951, Photograph 15. This two-story Art Moderne style brick building originally housed doctors' offices. The building has curved corners with panels of glass blocks on both stories. The building has a flat roof with coping and a curved, projecting, flat hood sheltering the first story. The entrance in the curved wall at the northeast corner is surrounded by glass blocks. The front wall of the first story has a ribbon of plate glass windows, with architectural tiles above and below the windows. The building's setback and brick construction are features relating it to the earlier buildings within the district.

2400 West Main Street, 5AH1270, Thomas Building, 1954. Local civic leader and real estate developer Diva C. Thomas built this corner commercial building in 1954. The building, which occupied part of the location of an earlier commercial structure, maintained the streetwall by employing the same setback as the earlier building. The one-story rectangular buff brick building NPS Form 10-900a 0MB No. 1024-0018 (Rev. 8/86)

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has a beveled corner with glazed door with sidelights and transom facing the intersection on the northeast. The building has a flat roof with a raised parapet at the center of the east wall. Five storefronts with slightly inset entrances and plate glass windows with concrete sills are on the east. The northern part of the building has been partially clad with Roman brick. The south and west walls are stuccoed. Other alterations include some glazed doors and newer plate glass windows and covered up entrances on the east and south.

Noncontributing Buildings

Nineteenth Century Buildings (1890-1899)

2410 West Main Street 5AH1272, Family Bar and Restaurant, Gulp Block/Theater, 1892. This one-story commercial building was part of the business block erected by S.F. Gulp in 1892 and housed an early boot and shoe store and a grocery. The remodeled building has a central glazed entrance vestibule, rectangular horizontal plate glass windows, a flat canopy, and the front is clad with stacked brick and stucco.

2420 West Main Street, 5AH1273, Jose's Restaurant Culp Block, 1892, Photograph 19. S.T. Gulp erected this one-story building as part of a business block in 1892. A 1976 remodeling altered fenestration and added stucco panels, vigas, and a tiled mansard overhang.

2430-40 West Main Street, 5AH1274, Abbott Building, 1890. C.D. Abbott's two-story commercial building originally housed a newspaper and a tinner. The rectangular brick building with two storefronts flanking a central entrance to the second story has been changed by the application of stucco; altered fenestration on the upper story, which removed two oriel windows and a balcony; and storefront alterations.

2490 West Main Street, 5AH1280, Littleton Liquor Store/Sinton's Barber, Crawford Saloon, 1890. This two-story corner building was praised for its substantial brick construction when it was erected to house J.E. Crawford's saloon in 1890. The building has a flat roof with molded cornice and brackets and an entrance on the northwest as well as a second entrance on the east. The walls have been covered with stucco and architectural tile, storefronts have been remodeled, the upper story windows and cornice have been altered, and cast iron pilasters were removed.

Early Twentieth Century Buildings (1900-1910)

2449-55 West Main Street, 5AH1276, Veto's Shoe Repair/Marty's Barber Shop, Havener Millinery, 1900s. The east storefront of this building was erected about 1 905 and housed a millinery. Between 1921 and 1932, the west storefront was added. The one-story flat roof building has been altered with stacked brick and corrugated siding, an angled wall leading to an inset entrance on the western storefront and metal frame display windows. NFS Form 10-900a OMB No. 1024-0018 (Rev. 8/86)

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Interwar Buildings (1919-1939)

2439 West Main Street, 5AH1275, Hansen Brothers Printing, Safeway Store, 1931. One-story brick commercial building with flat roof. The front has been remodeled with the addition of corrugated panels and architectural tile, as well as new display windows and glazed doors.

2460-70 West Main Street, 5AH1277, Main Street Golf/Littleton Hair Care, Veto Shoe Store, 1938. Veto LaRocco erected this building to serve two businesses in 1938. This one-story brick commercial building with flat roof contains two storefronts, each with an off-center entrance and plate glass display windows. The walls have been clad with textured stucco.

2589 West Main Street, 5AH1293, Jet Bar, Littleton Grill, 1930s. One-story brick commercial building with flat roof. The front of the building has been altered with new face brick and simulated masonry, an angled wall leading to the slab door entrance, and a horizontal picture window.

Buildings Erected After the Period of Significance (1956-Present)

2409 West Main Street, 5AH1271, Colorado Business Bank, Van Schaack & Co., 1960, Photograph 20. This one-story Modern style bank has a flat roof with wide overhang and wide fascia panels clad with metal. The south and east walls of the building are clad with panels of marble and the north and west walls are painted brick. The entrance at the southeast corner has a glazed vestibule. The east wall has a ribbon of tinted plate glass windows.

5577 South Nevada Street, 5AH1328, Marjorie Stark & Assocs., LLS, 1960s. This one-story, rectangular brick building is attached on the south to 2509 West Main Street. The building has a flat roof, walls of painted brick, and an off-center entrance sheltered by a fabric awning flanked by two above ground, hipped roof bay windows. NFS Form 10-900a ( OMB No. 1024-0018 (Rev. 8/86)

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RESOURCES WITHIN THE DISTRICT

State Contributing Year Property Address ID Number To District? Built

2299 W MAIN ST 5AH1263 Yes 1922 2329 W MAIN ST 5AH1264 Yes 1919 2359 W MAIN ST 5AH1267 Yes 1925 2379-99 W MAIN ST 5AH1269 Yes 1925 2400 W MAIN ST 5AH1270 Yes 1954 2409 W MAIN ST 5AH1271 No 1960 2410 W MAIN ST 5AH1272 No 1892 2420 W MAIN ST 5AH1273 No 1892 2430-40 W MAIN ST 5AH1274 No 1890 2439 W MAIN ST 5AH1275 No 1931 2449-55 W MAIN ST 5AH1276 No 1900s 2450 W MAIN ST 5AH161 Yes 1920 2460-70 W MAIN ST 5AH1277 No 1938 2485 W MAIN ST 5AH1278 Yes 1906 2489 W MAIN ST 5AH1279 Yes 1905 2490 W MAIN ST 5AH1280 No 1890 2500 W MAIN ST 5AH1281 Yes 1899 2509 W MAIN ST 5AH1282 Yes 1905 2516 WMAIN ST 5AH1283 Yes 1932 2529-39 W MAIN ST 5AH1284 Yes 1906 2530 W MAIN ST 5AH1285 Yes 1886 2546 W MAIN ST 5AH1286 Yes 1906 2550 W MAIN ST 5AH1287 Yes 1903 2559 W MAIN ST 5AH1288 Yes 1907 2560-64 W MAIN ST 5AH1289 Yes 1905 2569-75 W MAIN ST 5AH1290 Yes 1908 2570 W MAIN ST 5AH1291 Yes 1890s 2580 W MAIN ST 5AH1292 Yes 1893 2589 W MAIN ST 5AH1293 No 1930s 2590 W MAIN ST 5AH1294 Yes 1890s 5671 S NEVADA ST 5AH1328 No 1960s 5711 S NEVADA ST 5AH1329 Yes 1951 5686 S SYCAMORE ST 5AH1426 Yes 1920 NFS Form 10-900a OMB No. 1024-0018 (Rev. 8/86)

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Significance

The Littleton Main Street Historic District is significant under Criterion A, for its association with Littleton's historic development and reflects the impacts of historic economic trends, business philosophies, evolving traffic patterns, and population growth upon commercial areas, as well as changing patterns of civic life. The district is significant in the field of commerce for the many historic businesses which are associated with it, businesses which characterize the growth and development of the community and whose owners were among the leaders having the greatest impact on Littleton history. The district reflects the evolution of Littleton's Main Street from the era of livery stable to automobile service station and from milliner to department store. The district is significant for its association with transportation history, as part of Main Street originally formed a segment of a major north-south highway (U.S. 85) and was also served by an early twentieth century streetcar system. Businesses along Main Street catered to highway travelers and streetcar riders and automobile related enterprises flourished along the thoroughfare. The district is also significant in the field of government, as the early focus of governmental activity, containing buildings which served as early post offices, county offices, fire department garage, and town hall.

The Littleton Main Street Historic District is significant under Criterion C for its architecture, which includes some of the finest examples of late nineteenth and twentieth century commercial and governmental buildings in the city. The district is notable as it is an excellent reflection of the eclecticism of Littleton's commercial and public architecture and includes significant examples of architectural styles ranging from Italianate Commercial to Art Moderne. The buildings reflect changes in the popularity of construction materials over time, from red pressed brick and stone to terra cotta to glass block. The assemblage of historic buildings in the Main Street Historic District is the most visible reminder of Littleton's heritage and its evolution from a small agricultural supply center to a burgeoning suburban community. The district is also significant as one of its key buildings, the Littleton Town Hall, is an excellent example of the work of noted Colorado architect Jules J.B. Benedict which signified Main Street's importance as a public thoroughfare and set a high standard for subsequent construction. Most of the buildings within the district are representative of the anonymous work of local builders and craftsmen.

The Period of Significance for the district is 1890 to 1955, extending from the date of construction of the earliest building erected within the district to the date of completion of the modern Woodlawn Shopping Center east of the historic downtown, a defining moment which began the diversion of the commercial focus of the community away from Main Street. Following 1955, continued suburbanization of the area decentralized commercial functions in Littleton, and Main Street businesses inaugurated a variety of modernizing and restoration projects to reinvigorate its economic prospects. City governmental functions also moved from Main Street after the Period of Significance. Buildings erected in the early 1950s demonstrated direct relationships to older buildings through continuing the established setback of the existing streetwall and through their brick construction. Buildings erected after the Period of Significance began to disregard earlier NPS Form 10-900a OMB No. 1024-0018 (Rev. 8/86)

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established setbacks and to incorporate new construction materials. The district thus meets the requirements of Criteria Consideration G, as 1955 was an exceptionally significant date for the district and poses a logical ending date for the Period of Significance. One building originally constructed in 1886 was moved to Main Street in 1900, thus its contribution to the district begins at that date. Within the district, thirty-one resources were built during the Period of Significance and are associated with the commercial, transportation, and governmental development of Littleton; only two resources were erected after the Period of Significance. Twenty-nine of the resources within the district are more than fifty years old.

A majority of buildings within the district possess the physical characteristics required to be evaluated as contributing elements. To be contributing, a building should have been present on Main Street during the Period of Significance, should be associated with the commercial, transportation, or governmental development of Littleton, and should retain sufficient integrity to convey its appearance during the Period of Significance. The nineteenth century commercial buildings have been altered in a variety of ways since their construction. Most of their first story storefronts have been remodeled to some extent. If a building still displays substantial integrity on its upper story and maintains its original scale, setback, materials, and enough original design features to convey the era in which it was built, it was judged contributing. Buildings displaying no original materials and with substantial alterations, such as changes to fenestration of all stories, were evaluated as noncontributing. Buildings erected during the twentieth century have generally undergone fewer alterations, and several have been restored. As with buildings erected earlier, the most common changes to the twentieth century buildings were to first story display windows, kickplates, and doors. Buildings in which original materials are no longer evident and design features are dramatically altered were judged to be noncontributing. Buildings erected after the Period of Significance were categorized as noncontributing. In general, the buildings within the district maintain high integrity of design, scale, location, craftsmanship, setting, and materials, and as a group convey the historic associations which resulted in their creation.

Historical Background

Founding of Littleton

Discoveries of gold and silver drew thousands to Colorado in the 1860s and 1870s, but relatively few gained great riches from mining. Some of the unsuccessful prospectors noted the agricultural potential of the territory and the expanding market for crops represented by the mining camps. A small group of early agricultural settlers established themselves in the fertile valley of the South Platte River during this period. Richard S. Little, the New Hampshire native for whom Littleton is named, arrived in Denver in 1860 to apply his engineering expertise to ditch construction. Little and his wife, Angeline, were both afflicted with asthma, and the dry, clear air of the region lured them to take up a homestead encompassing part of present-day Littleton and expand their holdings NPS Form 10-900a 0MB No. 1024-0018 (Rev. 8/86)

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with purchased lands.5

The erection of the Rough and Ready Mill in 1867 by investors including Richard Little and John G. Lilley was perhaps the pivotal event that shaped the subsequent history of Littleton. The mill was the vicinity's first manufacturing enterprise and provided the nucleus for the growth of Littleton into the service center for the surrounding agricultural area. The Rough and Ready also provided the rationale for the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad's designation of Littleton as a stopping point, shipping site, and location for a depot. Historian W.H. Vickers wrote that the "mill did a good business from the first, being well supplied with excellent grain from its own immediate neighborhood, which is one of the wheat gardens of Colorado." On 8 April 1869, Littleton was formally recognized for mail delivery. 6

Littleton's location on the mainline of a major railroad greatly improved its accessibility and may have provided the impetus for Richard S. Little's platting of the Littleton townsite. On 3 June 1872, Little filed a plat for "Littleton," consisting of that portion of the east half of the southeast quarter of Section 17, Township 5 South, Range 68 West, lying east of the South Platte River and the Rough and Ready Mill race. The plat identified eighteen numbered blocks with lots of varying dimensions and alignments. 7

The arrival of the railroad and the town platting did not appear to immediately stimulate the growth of Littleton. The State Business Directory of 1877 listed just four businesses in Littleton that year: the Little, Lilley, and Co. Flouring Mill; Hill and Brother General Merchandise; the Bell House (hotel); and a restaurant operated by David Powers. The Rough and Ready Mill suffered two fires in the 1870s, but was rebuilt after each one. Jerome Smiley described Littleton as "a mere hamlet" by the late 1870s. 8

By the early 1880s Littleton was served by two major railroads. In 1881, the D&RG added a third rail to the line between Denver and Pueblo, thus permitting standard gauge equipment to travel over the route. The standard gauge Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railway (AT&SF) operated its

5Laurence W. Steele, The Roots of Prosperity: Littleton in the 1860s (Littleton: Littleton Historical Museum, 1981), 4 and 25; and Edwin A. Bemis, "Frontier Littleton: A Dramatic Town Since 1862, Brand Book of the Denver Westerners (Denver: The Westerners, Inc., 1965), 28, 34, and 35. 6W. H. Vickers, History of the City of Denver, Arapahoe County, and Colorado (Chicago: O.L. Baskin and Co., 1880), 180; and William H. Bauer, et al, Colorado Post Offices, 1859-1989 (Golden, Colorado: Colorado Railroad Museum, 1990), 89. 7Robert J. McQuarie and C.W. Buchholtz, Littleton, Colorado, Settlement to Centennial (Littleton: Littleton Historical Museum, 1990), 26. 8Jerome C. Smiley, History of Denver (Denver: Times-Sun Publishing Co., 1901, reprinted Denver: Old Americana Publishing Co., 1978), 795. NFS Form 10-900a OMB No. 1024-0018 (Rev. 8/86)

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trains over the upgraded line beginning in 1881. Five listings were shown in the 1881 State Business Directory for Littleton: the flour mill, a blacksmith shop, a general merchandise store, a saloon, and a hotel. Despite the presence of the railroad at the east end of the settlement, the most intensive development remained in the western area, in the vicinity of Rapp and Main streets near the Rough and Ready Mill. The western portion of the community remained the commercial focus of Littleton at that time. 9

The Colorado Live Stock Record in 1884 characterized the community as "a pleasant village of several years growth, . . . The location of Littleton, in the midst of a large area of agricultural and grazing country, makes it an excellent business point; the climate and surrounding attract invalids from the city, and the scenery is varied and attractive." In 1885, the population of the area was estimated at four hundred, most of whom were engaged in ranching, stockraising, and truck farming. 10

The economic tempo of the town appears to have accelerated considerably in the middle to late 1880s. In 1884, the Littleton Creamery was established by J.D. Hill and I.S. Morse. By 1888, the Creamery was processing milk from a thousand dairy cows and shipping cream and butter to Denver. In 1886, the O.G. Hill Drug Store was established on South Rapp St. (this building was moved to Main Street in 1900). An historic photograph indicates that the drug store carried a wide variety of merchandise, including drugs, paint, brushes, and window glass.

The Santa Fe Railway constructed its own standard gauge track from Pueblo to Denver in 1887, resulting in two separate tracks through Littleton. The State Business Directory for 1889 showed a quadrupling of listings since 1881. In addition to the flour mill and the creamery, the 1889 directory listed a hotel, two general merchandise stores, two meat markets, one drug store, two doctors, two churches (Episcopal and Presbyterian), two blacksmiths, and two artesian well contractors. By this time, initial development had begun on Main Street. The implementation of suburban train service to and from Denver on the "Uncle Sam" served to further enhance the attractiveness of Littleton as a suburban residential location.

Development of Main Street During the 1890s

A movement to incorporate Littleton as a town was initiated in 1890. The area within the proposed Town of Littleton included portions of Sections 16, 17, 20, and 21 lying east of the

9Keith L. Bryant, History of the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway (Lincoln, Nebraska: University of Nebraska Press, 1974), xvi-xvii and 140-42; Littleton Independent, Sixtieth Anniversary Edition, 1888-1948 (Littleton: Littleton Independent, 20 August 1948); and State Business Directory (1881). 10Colorado Live Stock Record, 27 September 1884, 6 and George A. Croffutt, Croffutt's Grip- Sack Guide to Colorado (Omaha, Nebraska: The Overland Publishing Co., 1885), 51 and 115. NPS Form 10-900a 0MB No. 1024-0018 (Rev. 8/86)

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South Platte River, and encompassed about 767 acres. In the ensuing election on 8 March 1890, the support of the Littleton electorate was nearly unanimous: eighty-six to three in favor of incorporation. Frank S. Gilmore, a realtor, was chosen as the town's first mayor. Spurred on by the town motto of "onward and upward," the new town board dealt with such municipal improvements as a water system and the installation of sidewalks. 11

During the late 1880s and early 1890s, the focus of commercial development in Littleton shifted, as business which had formerly centered around the flour mill and along Rapp Street began to spread eastward along Main Street. In July 1890, the Littleton Gazette reported that "Main street is making rapid strides in improvements of a substantial character." Among the improvements cited was a substantial two-story brick building being erected by C.D. Abbott at 2430-40 West Main St. to be occupied by a tinner and the Gazette office on the first story and with living rooms above. The newspaper commented that "this building will add greatly to the appearance of that portion of the city, and will be the means of other good buildings being erected." In August 1890, J.E. "Jack" Crawford followed this trend, erecting a two-story brick building to house his saloon at 2490 West Main Street. Although altered in later years, Crawford's corner building was considered a fine addition to the business district. A pragmatic observer for the Gazette commented, "Good for Jack and every other man who builds of brick or stone. A few substantial buildings of this kind will materially reduce the insurance rate in Littleton." 12

Among other buildings erected in the 1890s was an 1892 one-story building at 2420 West Main St., completed by S.T. Gulp, which housed a furniture, crockery, carpet, and undertaking establishment, as well as a printer and cobbler, offices, and a lunchroom. A second one-story building was erected by Gulp which contained a boot and shoe store and a grocery store. A two- story brick building at 2590 West Main St. contained a meat market. An 1893 two-story brick building at 2580 West Main St. became the site of the local post office. An ornately ornamented two-story building held the long-time business of German-born baker Charles Kalinowski at 2570 West Main St.

In 1899, August Kauer built a two-story corner business block at 2500 West Main St. at a cost of more than $8,000. The building, composed of brick with a lava stone basement and trim, was designed by architect Frederick C. Eberley of Denver and erected by contractor J.F. Tull of Littleton. Kauer's building had two storefronts facing Main Street, with the east used by the owner for his meat market and the other rented to a merchant. Kauer also used the basement for making sausage and curing meat, while the second floor was divided into two residence suites, one for Kauer's family and the other rented. The Littleton Independent featured a picture of the building

11 Littleton Gazette, 14 February 1890; Littleton Independent, 21 August 1975; and McQuarie and Buchholtz, 38. 12Littleton Gazette, 15 July 1890, 8 August 1890, 29 August 1890, 19 September 1890. NPS Form 10-900a OMB No. 1024-0018 (Rev. 8/86)

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in 1903 and described it as "one of Littleton's leading structures." 13

Early Twentieth Century Building Boom

Littleton incorporated too late in 1890 for a population number to be produced from the Census of that year. In 1900 the U.S. Census reported a total of 738 residents for Littleton. The town's population nearly doubled during the first decade of the twentieth century, rising to 1,373 in 1910. Infrastructure improvements kept pace with population changes in the commercial district. In 1902 a telephone exchange was installed above Thompson's Drug Store on Main Street. An electric light plant was installed in 1903. A 4.2 mile electric streetcar line connected Littleton to the Denver Tramway system in 1907. The route ran west on Main to a turnaround at Main and Rapp. Full service was in place by 10 November 1907. The following year the line was extended 0.8 miles over the South Platte River at Bowles to Bowles Park, a popular area for picnics. 14

In 1902, an amendment to the Colorado constitution divided portions of Arapahoe County lying outside of Denver into two counties: Adams and South Arapahoe. The name of the latter was subsequently changed to Arapahoe. The legislature designated Littleton as the interim county seat until a permanent site could be chosen in the 1904 election. Littleton was the oldest and most populous municipality in Arapahoe County in 1904 and it easily bested Englewood, its neighbor to the north, in the final selection. 15

Littleton's selection as the county seat ensured it would enjoy certain economic advantages over the other municipalities of the county. Expansion of Littleton's regional role brought further development of Main Street. In July 1905, the Littleton Independent reported that the First National Bank would join with Mr. and Mrs. Harry Lilley in the erection of a fine two-story business block at 2509 West Main St., constructed of red brick, wired for electricity, and steam heated. The bank was to occupy the corner section of the building and Mr. Lilley planned to rent out the other part of the ground floor, while the Knights of Pythias wanted to lease the second floor. The First National Bank was the oldest and largest of Littleton's banks until the Depression, when it failed on 12 January 1933. The bank's demise was blamed on the decline of farm and cattle values on which it had loaned money. 16

13Littleton Independent, 4 November 1898, 16 June 1899, and 31 July 1903. 14Littleton Independent, 7 August 1903; Ken Fletcher, Centennial State Trolleys (Golden, Colorado: Colorado Railroad Historical Foundation, 1995), 123-26; and Tivis Wilkins, Colorado Railroads: Chronological Development (Boulder, Colorado: Pruett Publishing Co., 1974), 169. 15Henry Kraft, Arapahoe County, Colorado and Littleton Its County Seat (Littleton: Independent Printers, 1904) and Littleton Independent, 22 July 1938. 16Littleton Independent, 14 July 1905, October 1905, and 22 July 1938; Waring, Hous's Littleton; Dave Hicks, Littleton From the Beginning (Denver: Egan Printing, 1975), 42. NFS Form 10-900a OMBNo. 1024.0018 (Rev. 8/86)

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Figure 2. Streetcar service reached Littleton in 1907. This 1909 view west shows the 2400 block of Main Street. SOURCE: Littleton Historical Museum, A Walk Down Main Street, Littleton, Colorado (Littleton: Littleton Historical Museum, 1985).

In the following year, Harry Lilley erected a building to the west of the bank, at 2529 West Main St., which employed design features of the First National. In 1907, the building housed the Arapahoe County offices, which were moved to the new courthouse on the hill east of the railroad tracks the following year. Lilley completed a third building with similar stylistic features in 1907. The building, 2559 West Main St., was operated as a livery stable, later becoming a garage, with the rear portion of the building serving as the fire department garage. The second floor of the building contained a dance hall during the early twentieth century. 17

Littleton's prosperity attracted the attention of successful Golden brewer Adolph Coors, who erected a two-story brick business block at 2489 West Main in 1905 (Figure 1). The original tenants of the building included a saloon which sold Coor's beer and hardware store on the first floor, while a gentlemen's organization, the Littleton Club, occupied the upper floor. In June 1909, the Littleton State Bank opened in the building. In 1906, a one-story extension of the building was

17Littleton Historical Museum files, Photographs 24 and 2006 and Photograph titled, "The Big Snow of Dec. 1913 in Littleton, Colo." and Littleton Independent, 20 July 1978. NPSForm 10-900a OMB No. 1024-0018 (Rev. 8/86)

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".3m,

Figure 3. The new Arapahoe County Courthouse is visible at the east end of Main Street in this 1909 view east from just west of Curtice Street. SOURCE: Littleton Historical Museum, A Walk Down Main Street, Littleton, Colorado (Littleton: Littleton Historical Museum, 1985).

completed, containing a store, a drugstore, and the post office.

Another important addition to Main Street was the completion of the office and printing plant of Littleton Independent at 2546 West Main St. in 1906. The Independent, which traced its beginnings to 1888, remained in the building until 1978. Its years in the building embraced the tenures of the nationally-renowned team of Publisher Edwin A. Bemis and Editor Houstoun Waring.

Success of the commercial enterprises along Main Street appeared assured when the initial state highway plan of the late 1910s placed Littleton on the North-South Highway through Colorado. Figures 2 and 3 show Main Street in 1909 from two vantage points. This route linked Denver to Colorado Springs and the other major cities of the Front Range. Main Street in Littleton was paved in 1917. When the federal highway system was designated in the mid-1920s, the road through Littleton became part of U.S. Highway 85. The highway meandered through Littleton, entering the town from the north along Rio Grande Street and turning west on Berry and south on Prince to Main Street. The route exited Littleton via Main Street and Rapp.

The extent of Littleton's early physical development is illustrated by a 1912 water supply map of the town, which shows building outlines by lot (Figure 4). The commercial core of the town was well-defined along Main Street between Curtice Street on the west and Harrison (Sycamore) Street NFS Form 10-900a OMB No. 1024-0018 (Rev. 8/86)

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Figure 4. The extent of commercial development along Main Street is shown in this 1912 map of Littleton. SOURCE: Littleton Water Commission, "Map of Water Supply for Town of Littleton" (Littleton: Town of Littleton, 1912), in the files of the Littleton Area Historical Museum. on the east, with a street-wall of buildings in place for most of that segment. The blocks north of Main Street and south of Berry Avenue comprised the most intensively developed residential area within the town. Growth experienced during the first decade of the century provided space for much of the business activity of the period before World War I. By 1920, the town's population had risen to 1,636, a 19 percent (263 person) increase over 1910. A 1 921 Rocky Mountain News article noted that the area had drawn Denver families to permanently settle there, remarking that Littleton was "far enough from city bustle and noise to be comfortable, and close enough to the larger city to have all the advantages the larger city offers." 18

Demonstrating that Littleton was worthy of such praise, the town hired architect and Littleton

18Town of Littleton, "Map of Water Supply for the Town of Littleton" (Littleton: Water Commission, September 1912); and Rocky Mountain News, 9 October 1921. NFS Form 10-900a 0MB No. 1024-0018 (Rev. 8/86)

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resident Jules J.B. Benedict to design its Carnegie library in 1916. Following the success of that building, Benedict was also selected by town leaders to design a new Town Hall at 2450 West Main Street, completed in 1920 (See Figure 5). Town officials requested that the front of the building "have a character that would dominate the design" and Benedict complied. The striking terra cotta facade included Columbine ornamentation installed by workmen from the Denver Terra Cotta Company. The $24,725 building housed town government offices as well as fire department equipment. The building drew national notice in architectural and municipal journals. In 1930, Littleton Independent publisher Edwin Bemis praised Benedict for his efforts: "You have contributed a great deal toward the beautification and upbuilding of Littleton . . . Littleton is mighty fortunate in having a man of your ability take such an interest in the progress of the town." 19

Littleton's location on a U.S. highway, in combination with its role as an agricultural service center, resulted in its possessing more transportation related establishments than would be expected for a small community. Auto dealerships, gasoline stations, tire dealers, motels, and restaurants vied for drive-by trade. Other local businesses also geared their services to travelers. As early as 1921, the Rocky Mountain News observed that Littleton "sees more automobiles go by in a day than any other town of its size in Colorado. It is so close to the state's capital, the roads are such an inducement and the surroundings so prosperous and picturesque that it has long been a favorite mecca for automobiles." Improved roads and the greater numbers of households with automobiles solidified Littleton's role as a farm service center. Saturday nights in the late 1920s found Main Street packed with farmers and shoppers.20

Responding to the rising popularity of the automobile, Ivy W. Hunt had erected his Ford dealership at 2329 West Main St. in 1919. The original building contained offices, a show room, and an auto parts section. By 1932, the facility included the auto sales room, a garage with seventy-five-car capacity, and a filling station. The popularity of the automobile was also reflected in the erection of the 1922 Sommers Oil Company service station across the street at 2299 West Main St. During the 1930s, the station's motto was "Littleton's Conveniently Located Service Station." Shoppers on Main Street were invited to leave their cars for a complete servicing while visiting the stores: "You waste no time or extra steps this way, and our reliable service will save you expense on car maintenance." 21

19Waring, Hous's Littleton; "Littleton Town Hall," National Register of Historic Places nomination, 5AH161, 27 February 1980; Carolyn K. Keller, "Exploring Architecture in Arapahoe County, Colorado: 1860-1 995," M.A. thesis, University of Colorado at Denver, 1993; Letter from Edwin A. Bemis to J. J.B. Benedict, 6 March 1 930, in the University of Colorado Archives, Boulder, Colorado, copy in the Littleton Historical Museum; Rocky Mountain News, 18 January 1948; Thomas J. Noel and Barbara S. Norgren, Denver: The City Beautiful and Its Architects, 1893-1941 (Denver: Historic Denver, Inc., 1987), 188-89. 20Rocky Mountain News, 9 October 1921; and Littleton Independent, 21 September 1989. 21 Littleton Independent, 22 July 1938. NFS Form 10-900a OMB No. 1024-0018 (Rev. 8/86)

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Figure 5. Littleton's Town Hall, designed by prominent local architect Jules J.B. Benedict, gained national recognition upon its completion in 1920. SOURCE: Littleton Historical Museum, A Walk Down Main Street, Littleton, Colorado (Littleton: Littleton Historical Museum, 1985).

Another important twentieth century industry also came to Main Street during the period: motion pictures. The first movies were shown in Littleton in an early town hall in 1911. In 1915, an 1892 building at 2410 West Main St. was remodeled into the Lux Theater, which showed three silent films each week in the 1920s and the first talkie in 1928. Later becoming the Grand Theatre and then the Vogue, the building continued to screen movies until the erection of the Woodlawn Theater drew away its patrons in the 1950s. The 480-seat Palm Theatre, the finest of Littleton's historic movie theaters was erected in 1925 at 2359 West Main St. The theater operated only a few years before being converted to a J.C. Penney store in the 1930s.

The one-story commercial block to the west of the Palm at 2379-99 West Main St. was also constructed in 1925. It was erected by A.J. Valore to accommodate his hardware store plus two NFS Form 10-900a 0MB No. 1024-0018 (Rev. 8/86)

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rented commercial units. Valore had come to Littleton in 1907 and operated a hardware store in the Coors Building until 1913. In 1917, he returned to the town, acquired the Jull Hardware store which stood on Main Street, and resumed his hardware operation. Valore Hardware is still a family operated business, "an old-fashioned hardware store with a little bit of everything."22

Littleton began the 1930s with a population of 2,019 persons. The town had grown by 383 persons or 23.4 percent during the 1920s. The effects of the Great Depression were seemingly less intense in Littleton than in other areas of Colorado. In the wake of the 1931 closure of the large Ingersoll-Rand manufacturing plant north of town, a group of younger businessmen formed the Junior Chamber of Commerce to encourage businesses to relocate to Littleton. Red Comet, a manufacturer of fire extinguishers, briefly occupied the site before moving into the former Ivy Hunt car dealership building on Main Street. Other large buildings on Main Street were rehabilitated for use by new occupants, such as the 1908 Batschelet Block which became the home of the C.E. Stephenson Motor Company, a Dodge-Plymouth dealership in the 1930s.

Although the new buildings erected during the 1930s were small and designed with minimal exterior ornamentation, the continued growth of the downtown indicates that Littleton fared better than many other communities. Among the 1930s businesses established in new buildings were: the Clyde Rice grocery and a dry cleaner at 2516 West Main St.; the Adams Bakery and Veto Shoe Shop at 2460-70 West Main St.; and the Littleton Grill at 2589 West Main St. Jeweler Robert Swanson, whose father had established the family business on Main Street in 1911, remembered that during the Depression "often, we bartered watch repair for chickens, eggs, roasts and other food . . .The barter system saved a lot of us."23

The Postwar Period

Between 1890 and 1950, the physical size of Littleton's municipal boundary had remained unchanged. The post-World War II period saw annexations increase the area of Littleton from 1.2 square miles to 10.9 square miles. At the same time the city's population rose from 2,244 in 1940 to 33,711 in 1990. The tremendous population boom experienced by Littleton after World War II reflected national trends of suburbanization in housing.

Major new manufacturing concerns were attracted to Littleton in the postwar period, while existing industries continued to operate. Some of the older firms would eventually close or relocate, but the presence of the new firms with large numbers of employees and hefty payrolls would soften the blow. Electron, Martin, Johns Manville, OK Tire, Regal Plastics, and C.A. Norgren came to Littleton during the postwar period. The larger firms with national defense orientations chose larger sites lying outside the older commercial core of Littleton, in turn drawing settlement further

22Littleton Independent, 24 February 1977 and 8 March 1990. "Littleton Times, Littleton Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow, July 1990, 7. NPS Form 10-900a OMB No. 1024-0018 (Rev. 8/86)

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outward from the original townsite. 24

Main Street, while basically built out by the 1940s (See Figure 6), continued to redevelop and redefine itself. Adjacent to Main Street, a doctors' office building was completed in the early 1950s at 5711 South Nevada St. In 1954, local realtor and civic leader Ulva C. Thomas erected a corner business building at 2400 West Main St. Although the building was listed as vacant in the 1955 city directory, it eventually attracted a long-time occupant, Littleton Stationers and Printers.

In Littleton, the national phenomenon of developing shopping centers outside of traditional downtown commercial areas saw its initial expression in the creation of the $1 million Woodlawn Shopping Center at West Littleton Boulevard and Windemere Street in 1955. The new center was designed by Miles Lantz and Associates and featured a Safeway supermarket, a Republic Drug Store, a Woolworth's, and a modern movie theater. The erection of a new shopping center less than a mile east of Main Street in Littleton had a profound impact on the older commercial area.25

The popularity of the shopping center reduced business activity on Main Street, which continued to provide long established services to loyal customers while searching for new ways to attract the residents moving to Littleton. By the 1950s, some citizens suggested that Littleton needed to "refurbish its store fronts downtown." A few property owners modernized their buildings, while others preferred the traditional look. The city attempted to boost Main Street with beautification efforts such as a 1967 streetscaping project which erected ninety-five concrete "umbrellas" and fifty big planters along the street. Main Street was also turned into a one-way street at this time. Some citizens still shopped on Main Street to experience the nostalgia of having a soda at the Sell- 4-Less Drugstore and finding personalized service in the family-owned businesses, but the economic tide continued to run toward the shopping centers which proliferated during the postwar period. Main Street was considered the "emotional heart of the city," but officials and Main Street business owners seemed to find no agreement in how to preserve its character. 26

In recent years, Main Street business owners have begun to experience renewed optimism and economic vitality as new residents discover the heritage of the city. Renewed interest in Main Street is reflected in the restoration and reuse of buildings such as the Town Hall, Hunt Building, and the Coors Block. In 1991, Littleton's Second Century Fund was created with the vision of restoring the historic character of the downtown. The City of Littleton administers the Littleton Main Street Historic Preservation Program, which provides funds for restoration and preservation of visible historic elements on buildings on Main Street. As one Littleton resident commented, Littleton's Main Street provides a sense of community in the face of continued growth and change:

24Rocky Mountain News, 31 August 1994, 44A. 25Denver Post, 1 June 1955. 26McQuarie and Buchholtz, 85; and Denver Post, 4 August 1989. NPSForm 10-900a OMB No. 1024-0018 (Rev. 8/86)

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"The one thing downtown Littleton has is an identity. It's an entity ... a place . it's very clearly defined. It has a Main Street like the towns a lot of us grew up in."27

Figure 6. This late 1940s view west from Sycamore Street shows the well-developed streetwall along Main Street, with the Carnegie Public Library and the Rocky Mountains beyond. SOURCE: Littleton Chamber of Commerce brochure in the files of the Denver Public Library, Western History and Genealogy Department.

27Rocky Mountain News, 19 September 1997, 5G; Nancy Clark, "The Littleton Story," Colorado Business, May 1979, 100. NPS Form 10-900a 0MB No. 1024-0018 (Rev. 8/86)

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Bibliography

Arapahoe County Assessor. Real estate information. Littleton, Colorado.

Barnes, Candice. "An Architectural and Historic Building Survey: Inventory and Evaluation, Littleton, Phase IV." Littleton Historical Museum, 1975.

Bauer, William H., James L. Ozment, and John H. Willard. Colorado Post offices, 1859-1989. Golden, Colorado: Colorado Railroad Museum, 1990.

Bemis, Edwin A. "Frontier Litt!eton-A Dramatic Town Since 1862." Brand Book of the Denver Westerners, vol XX. Denver, Co: The Westerners, Inc., 1965.

Bryant, Keith L. History of the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway. Lincoln, Nebraska: University of Nebraska Press, 1974.

Colorado Historical Society, Office of Archaeology and Historic Preservation. File search of survey area conducted 2 June 1997. In the files of the Colorado Historical Society, Denver, Colorado.

Croffutt, George A. Croffutt's Grip-Sack Guide of Colorado. Omaha, Nebraska: The Overland Publishing Co., 1885.

Fletcher, Ken. Centennial State Trolleys. Golden, Colorado: Colorado Railroad Historical Foundation, 1995.

Forrest, Kenton and Charles Albi. Denver's Railroads: The Story of Union Station and the Railroads of Denver. Golden, Colorado: Colorado Railroad Museum, 1981.

Hicks, Dave. Littleton From the Beginning. Denver: Egan Printing, 1975.

Houtsma, Elmer. Saints & Sinners in Littleton. Littleton, Colo.: Hillway Publishing, 1994.

Keller, Carolyn K. "Exploring Architecture in Arapahoe County, Colorado: 1860-1995." M.A. Thesis, University of Colorado at Denver, 1993.

Kraft, Henry. Arapahoe County, Colorado and Littleton Its County Seat. Littleton: Littleton Independent, 1904.

Leonard, Stephen J. and Noel, Thomas J. Denver: Mining Camp to Metropolis. Niwot, Colorado: University Press of Colorado, 1990. NFS Form 10-900a 0MB No. 1024-0018 (Rev. 8/86)

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Littleton Area Historical Museum. Littleton's Yesterday, A Pictorial Study. Littleton: Littleton Area Historical Museum, 1971.

Littleton Historical Museum. "A Walk Down Main Street, Littleton, Colorado." Littleton: Littleton Historical Museum, 1985.

Littleton Independent. From County Seat Town to Modern Denver Suburb. Souvenir Edition. 75th Anniversary Edition. Littleton: Littleton Independent, 21 July 1963.

Littleton Independent. 100 Years of News: The Littleton Sentinel Independent, 1888-1988. Littleton: Littleton Independent, 1988.

Littleton Independent. Sixtieth Anniversary Edition, 1888-1948. Littleton: Littleton Independent, 20 August 1948.

Littleton Independent. The Story of Littleton: Denver's Best Suburb, 1888-1938. Golden Jubilee Number. Littleton: Littleton Independent, 22 July 1938.

Littleton, Town of. "Map of Water Supply for the Town of Littleton." Littleton: Water Commission, September 1912. Shows building outlines by lot. In the files of the Littleton Historical Museum, Littleton, Colorado.

Lobato, Rudolph B. "An Architectural and Historic Building Survey: Inventory and Evaluation." Littleton" Littleton Area Historical Museum, 1972.

McQuarie, Robert J. and C.W. Buchholtz. Littleton, Colorado, Settlement to Centennial. Littleton: Littleton Historical Museum, 1990.

Nippert, Stephen. "An Architectural and Historic Building Survey: Inventory and Evaluation: Littleton, Phase II." Littleton: Littleton Area Historical Museum, 1973.

Noel, Thomas J. and Barbara S. Norgren. Denver: The City Beautiful and Its Architects, 1893- 1941. Denver: Historic Denver, Inc., 1987.

Sanborn Map Company. "Littleton, Colorado." Fire insurance maps. Pelham, New York: Sanborn Map Company, 1893, 1900, 1908, 1914, 1921, 1932, and 1949. In the files of the University of Colorado, Norlin Library, Boulder, Colorado, and the Denver Public Library, Western History and Genealogy Department, Denver, Colorado.

Smiley, Jerome C. Smiley. History of Denver. Denver: Times-Sun Publishing Co., 1901, reprinted Denver: Old Americana Publishing Co., 1978. NFS Form 10-900a 0MB No. 1024-0018 (Rev. 8/86)

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Steele, Laurence W. The Roots of Prosperity: Littleton in the 1860s. Littleton: Littleton Historical Museum, 1982.

Taylor, Gary M. "The Architecture of J.B. Benedict and Littleton's Main Street Redevelopment." Prepared for the Littleton Area Historical Museum, Littleton, Colorado. Boulder, Colo.: Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education, 1974.

Vickers, W.H. History of the City of Denver, Arapahoe County, and Colorado. Chicago: O.L. Baskin and Co., 1880.

XL Directory Service. Denver Suburban Directories: Section E. Englewood, Colorado: XL Directory Service, 1939.

XL Directory Service. Littleton City Directory. Colorado Springs, Colorado: XL Directory Service, 1953, 1955, 1959, and 1961.

XL Directory Service. XL Directory of Western Arapahoe County. Denver: XL Directory Service, 1932.

Waring, Houstoun. Hous's Littleton. E.M. Frisby, ed. Littleton: Littleton Independent, 1981.

Wilson, 0. Meredith. The Denver and Rio Grande Project, 1870-1901: A History of the First Thirty Years of the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad. Salt lake City, Utah: Howe Brothers, 1982. NFS Form 10-900a OMB No. 1024-0018 (Rev. 8/86)

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Boundary Description

The district includes the thirty-three buildings addressed as follows: 2299, 2329, 2359, 2379-99, 2400, 2409, 2410, 2420, 2430-40, 2439, 2449-55, 2450, 2460-70, 2485, 2489, 2490, 2500, 2509, 2516, 2529-39, 2530, 2546, 2550, 2559, 2560-64, 2569-75, 2570, 2580, 2589, and 2590 West Main St.; 5671 and 5711 South Nevada St.; and 5686 South Sycamore St. The boundary is indicated on the scaled Sketch Map of the district.

Boundary Justification

The district boundary was drawn to include the largest concentration of the architecturally intact, historically significant commercial properties along West Main Street, as well as buildings on sidestreets to the alley line north and south of West Main Street. Boundaries of the district were drawn to exclude areas with greater concentrations of buildings with major alterations and buildings constructed outside the Period of Significance for the district. As the district's focus was on the historic commercial and civic development of Littleton, boundaries were drawn to exclude surrounding residential areas. The south (even numbered) side of the 2300 block of West Main Street was excluded from the district because of gaps in the streetwall and because of pending redevelopment plans which call for the demolition of two additional buildings on that blockface. The 2600 block of West Main Street was not included due to the loss of architectural integrity and more recent construction which altered the pattern of the street's building setback. NPSForm 10-900a OMB No. 1024-0018 (Rev. 8/86)

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LIST OF PROPERTY OWNERS *** Listed in Street Address Order ***

Property Address/State ID Owner Name and Mailing Address

2299 W MAIN ST (5AH1263) MCCAUGHEY, BRUCE 5686 S SYCAMORE ST LITTLETON CO 80120

2329 W MAIN ST (5AH1264) SCISM, JOHN D & CHAPLIN, BONNIE, 50% INT ET AL 2608 N OCEAN BLVD POMPANO BEACH FL 33062

2359 W MAIN ST (5AH1267) OWENS, ROBERT A 2359 W MAIN ST LITTLETON CO 80120

2379-99 W MAIN ST (5AH1269) VALORE, RICHARD J 5992 S PENNSYLVANIA ST LITTLETON CO 80121

2400 W MAIN ST (5AH1270) CLK-LLC PO BOX 129 LITTLETON CO 80160

2409 W MAIN ST (5AH1271) ELLIOTT KIOWA INC 2040 W PINERIDGE AVE LITTLETON CO 80120

2410 W MAIN ST (5AH1272) GRIFFITH, RONALD K & BARBARA T JT TEN 1836 W LAKE AVE LITTLETON CO 80120

2420 W MAIN ST (5AH1273) TRUJILLO, JOSEPH M 5574 S HURON ST LITTLETON CO 80120 NFS Form 10-900a OMB No. 1024-0018 (Rev. 8/86)

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Property Address/State ID Owner Name and Mailing Address

2430-40 W MAIN ST (BAH 1274) KELLEY, PATRICK 2436 W MAIN ST LITTLETON CO 80120

2429-39 W MAIN ST (5AH1275) HANSEN BROS LITHO & PRINTING CO 2429 W MAIN ST LITTLETON CO 80120

2449-55 W MAIN ST (5AH1276) LAROCCO, STEPHEN E 4250 S GALAPAGO ST ENGLEWOOD CO 80110

2450 W MAIN ST(5AH161) LITTLETON COLO BLDG AUTHORITY 2255 W BERRY AVE LITTLETON CO 80120

2460-70 W MAIN ST (5AH1277) LAROCCO, TONY & VIRGINIA REVOCABLE TRUST 1555 W BERRY AVE LITTLETON CO 80120

2485 W MAIN ST (5AH1278) CARBAUGH, GARY A & SHARON J, JT TEN 5991 S EUDORA WAY LITTLETON CO 80121

2489 W MAIN ST (5AH1279) CARBAUGH, GARY A & SHARON J, JT TEN 5991 S EUDORA WAY LITTLETON CO 80121

2490 W MAIN ST (5AH1280) WEISBROT, EDWARD J 5621 S NEVADA ST LITTLETON CO 80120

2500 W MAIN ST (5AH1281) KAMPHAUSEN, BUCK 200 ROLLINGWOOD DR VALLEJO CA 94591 NPS Form 10-900a OMBNo. 1024-0018 (Rev. 8/86)

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Property Address/State ID Owner Name and Mailing Address

2509-19 W MAIN ST (5AH1282) HOUTSMA, MARK A 2519 W MAIN ST LITTLETON CO 80120

2516 W MAIN ST (5AH1283) GRAY, FRANKLIN R & SUSAN JT TEN 2231 W BRIARWOOD AVE LITTLETON CO 80120

2529-39 W MAIN ST (5AH1284) STEELE, JACK W & DONALD E UND 1/2 INT EACH 4770 S WADSWORTH BLVD LITTLETON CO 80123

2530 W MAIN ST (5AH1285) WRL PARTNERSHIP 5881 S SHERMAN WAY LITTLETON CO 80121

2546 W MAIN ST (5AH1286) SCHWARZENBERGER, JOHN D 1/2 INT, ET AL 2540 W MAIN ST LITTLETON CO 80120

2550 W MAIN ST (5AH1287) SCHWARZENBERGER, JOHN D 1/2 INT, ET AL 2540 W MAIN ST LITTLETON CO 80120

2559 W MAIN ST (5AH1288) STEELE, JACK W & DONALD E UND 1/2 INT EACH 4770 S WADSWORTH BLVD LITTLETON CO 80123

2560-64 W MAIN ST (5AH1289) SMITH, ALBERT C SR & GUSSIE M, JT TEN PO BOX 1010 LITTLETON CO 80160

2569-75 W MAIN ST (5AH1290) J & M REEVES ASSOCIATES LLC"S"S 2072 W RIDGE RD LITTLETON CO 80120 NFS Form 10-900a 0MB No. 1024-0018 (Rev. 8/86)

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Property Address/State ID Owner Name and Mailing Address

2570 W MAIN ST (5AH1291) SMITH, ALBERT C SR & GUSSIE M, JT TEN PO BOX 1010 LITTLETON CO 80160

2580 W MAIN ST (5AH1292) SMITH, GUSSIE M PO BOX 1010 LITTLETON CO 80160

2589 W MAIN ST (5AH1293) TRUONG, LEE 203 W HAMPDEN AVE ENGLEWOOD CO 80110

2590 W MAIN ST (5AH1294) SMITH, GUSSIE M PO BOX 1010 LITTLETON CO 80160

5671 S NEVADA ST (5AH1328) HOUTSMA, MARK A 2519 WMAIN ST LITTLETON CO 80120

5711 S NEVADA ST (5AH1329) KAMPHAUSEN, BUCK 200 ROLLINGWOOD DR VALLEJO CA 94591

5686 S SYCAMORE ST (5AH1426) MCCAUGHEY, BRUCE 5686 S SYCAMORE ST LITTLETON CO 80120 NFS Form 10-900a OMB No. 1024-0018 (Rev. 8/86)

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Photographic Index

Information that is the same for each photograph:

Name of the Property: Littleton Main Street Historic District City and State: Littleton, Arapahoe County, Colorado Location of Original Negatives: Littleton Area Historical Museum 6028 S. Gallup Street Littleton, Colorado 80120

Photo Number Photograph Information

1 Description of View: 2400 block W. Main Street (even numbers, south side) from Nevada St. Camera Direction: Southeast Photographer: Roger Whitacre Date: June 1997

2 Description of View: 2500 block W. Main Street in foreground with old Courthouse in distance from Curtice St. Camera Direction: East Photographer: T.H. Simmons Date: November 1997

3 Description of View: 2500 block W. Main Street in foreground with old Carnegie Library and mountains in distance from Nevada St. Camera Direction: West Photographer: T.H. Simmons Date: November 1997

4 Description of View: 2500 block W. Main Street (even numbers, south side) from Curtice St. Camera Direction: Southeast Photographer: T.H. Simmons Date: November 1997

5 Description of View: 2570 W. Main Street Camera Direction: South Photographer: T.H. Simmons Date: November 1997

6 Description of View: 2585-89 W. Main Street Camera Direction: Northeast Photographer: T.H. Simmons Date: November 1997 NPS Form 10-900a OMB No. 1024-0018 (Rev. 8/86)

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Photo Number Photograph Information

7 Description of View: 2500 block W. Main Street (odd numbers, north side) from Nevada St. Camera Direction: Northwest Photographer: T.H. Simmons Date: November 1997

8 Description of View: 2509 W. Main Street and 5671 S. Nevada St. Camera Direction: Northwest Photographer: T.H. Simmons Date: November 1997

9 Description of View: 2569-75 W. Main St. Camera Direction: Northwest Photographer: Roger Whitacre Date: June 1997

10 Description of View: 2300 block W. Main St. (odd numbers, north side) from S. Sycamore St. Camera Direction: Northwest Photographer: T.H. Simmons Date: November 1997

11 Description of View: 2299 W. Main St. and 5686 S. Sycamore St. Camera Direction: Northeast Photographer: T.H. Simmons Date: November 1997

12 Description of View: 2450 W. Main St. Camera Direction: Southwest Photographer: T.H. Simmons Date: November 1997

13 Description of View: 2359 W. Main St. Camera Direction: North-Northwest Photographer: Roger Whitacre Date: June 1997

14 Description of View: 2379-99 W. Main St. Camera Direction: North Photographer: Roger Whitacre Date: September 1997

15 Description of View: 5711 S. Nevada St. Camera Direction: West-Southwest Photographer: Roger Whitacre Date: June 1997 NPS Form 10-900a OMB No. 1024-0018 (Rev. 8/86)

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Photo Number Photograph Information

16 Description of View: 2400 block W. Main St. (even numbers, south side) Camera Direction: Southwest Photographer: T.H. Simmons Date: November 1997

17 Description of View: 2400 block W. Main St. (odd numbers, north side) Camera Direction: Northwest Photographer: T.H. Simmons Date: November 1997

18 Description of View: 2329 W. Main St. Camera Direction: North Photographer: Roger Whitacre Date: June 1997

19 Description of View: 2420 W. Main St. Camera Direction: South Photographer: Roger Whitacre Date: June 1997

20 Description of View: 2409 W. Main St. Camera Direction: Northwest Photographer: Roger Whitacre Date: June 1997 NPSForm 10-900a 0MB No. 1024-0018 (Rev. 8/86)

United States Department of the Interior National Park Service

National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet

Section number _Sketch Map Page 39 Littleton Main Street, Arapahoe County, Colorado

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United States Department of the Interior National Park Service

National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet

Section number Sketch Map Page _4Q_ Littleton Main Street, Arapahoe County, Colorado

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